


a fingerprint of lipstick (ain't enough)

by halfwheeze



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: M/M, idk somebody else got an anon and i got inspired lbr, lipstickwearing!ryan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-09
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-29 06:02:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13920900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/halfwheeze/pseuds/halfwheeze
Summary: in which both ryan bergara and shane madej try something new.





	a fingerprint of lipstick (ain't enough)

**Author's Note:**

> uh, enjoy! the shyanlibrary on tumblr got an anon and i filled it.

It wasn't a big deal. Really, it wasn't. They just did it for Buzzfeed, like they did so many other slightly embarrassing but overall enjoyable things for Buzzfeed; Ryan just isn't used to enjoying the weird things as much as this one. No one judges their coworkers at Buzzfeed, and that's kind of the only reason Ryan can make himself go to work like this, because he doesn't think he could do it if he worked anywhere else. Curly sends a grin his way as soon as Ryan walks in the building, getting coffee and not walking over to actually talk to him. Ryan smiles back and ducks his head, heading up the stairs. The Ladylike Girls and the Worth It boys all look on approvingly as well, and Ryan's confidence mounts as he gets closer to his own desk in the office.

But they aren't the ones who have the opinions that he cares most about. The idea of the Unsolved team - of Shane - judging him for this just sends shivers down his spine, makes him feel like hiding in the bathroom and taking it off with the mini pack of wipes in his back pocket that he couldn't bring himself to leave home. He swallows as he approaches his and Shane's shared desk, a smile coming onto his face unbidden as he looks at the shared mess in the floor between their seats. It's frustratingly and delightfully familiar, making him feel a little more safe with who he is right now. He sits down without greeting Shane, even though the other man is already sat down, just bumping their rolling chairs together a little.

"Hey man - woah," Shane says once he turns to look at Ryan, eyebrows raised. Ryan can feel his heart climb into his throat, his breath going through his teeth in a sigh before he can choke it down. "No! I'm not judging! Don't make that face. You just... You look good," Shane rectifies, his trademark chill grin making him look more honest, more believable. Ryan grins back, bumping their chairs again.

"Shut up, Shane," Ryan quips, looking to his computer rather than letting Shane fucking Madej make him blush for any longer than he already has. He can hear Shane's chuckle before he puts headphones down over his ears, cutting him off from how much Shane affects him. God, he wishes he didn't have a crush on his best friend. It's so goddamn inconvenient.

He honestly needed help picking out shades that would go with his skin tone, the textures that would make him more comfortable, how to put it on to best highlight the shape of his mouth, the contour of his lips. He watched an embarrassing amount of makeup tutorials before taking the plunge, immediately buying lipstick that honestly cost too much money just because it looks really, really good. He's ridiculously proud of his purchase, even after he has to reapply it in the middle of the day after he and Shane catch lunch together. The color and the matte finish make him feel... almost pretty, and he's just realising how much he likes that.

"Hey, Ry. It's almost time to go. Wanna go get a drink, maybe get a bite to eat?" Shane asks at the day's end, and Ryan has to temper down on the surge of almost-anxiety that his best friend could be asking him out on a date. It's not a date. Shane is his friend and that's it, because they're good as friends and as coworkers and that's all they'll ever be. That's all they really need to be. He just nods at Shane, grabbing his coat and sliding it on, checking his lipstick in the glass on the second floor banister when they pass by it. He hadn't noticed the other man had stopped, but he catches Shane grinning at him in the reflection. He sticks out his tongue and gives Shane a little bit of a shove, startling him down the stairs.

"I could have died!" Shane says, but he's laughing, clearly amused and maybe a touch fond. Ryan shoulder checks him as soon as they make it to the bottom of the stairs, moving quickly out of the way so he can't successfully do it back. "You're a shit, Ryan Bergara," Shane remarks beneath his breath, and this time it's all fondness and no anger, sweet and quiet. It's all Ryan can do not to hold his breath for some reason, just lost of it in this moment.

"So where are we getting drinks, oh sasquatch?" Ryan asks, bursting into laughter as Shane bumps him as they exit the building. Shane bumps him harder for good measure, staying closer together this time. Ryan wonders how badly it would mess up his lipstick if he pulled Shane down to kiss him; it doesn't matter. They're best friends. He's not going to kiss Shane anyway. Their hands are touching as they walk down the street.

"You choose. You're more on the bar scene than me," Shane tells him, which isn't exactly wrong, to be fair. Ryan shrugs.

"I don't really care. The place on 10th?" he suggests, bumping his shoulder to Shane's again. It was the only place he could think of on a short notice that was close enough to walk. Shane just nods, letting a silence settle over them that's more comfortable than Ryan really ever is with anyone. The back of his hand keeps brushing the back of Shane's, and he should probably take a step to the left to distance them, but it's fine. They're fine. Getting to the bar doesn't take long, and they're plunged from their shared silence to the din of a bar that is trying to compete with the clubs on the block. It's loud and full of people, but it's the kind of scene that Ryan likes to disappear into occasionally, just to lose himself among people who would like to lose themselves too.

"How about I order drinks and you find a table?" Shane suggests, nearly directly into Ryan's ear. Suppressing the shiver that wants to make its way down his spine, Ryan just nods, slipping away to find a table. He touches his fingers to his lipstick, making sure it doesn't feel smeared at all; it doesn't, which is a big relief. He didn't want to have to make his way to the bathroom in this mess. He sits down at a table that could probably fit four people at it in the back corner, just so he and Shane could have as much space as they could want. It's less than a minute after he sits down that a man who is distinctly not Shane slides into the other side of the booth.

"Hey. You come here often?" mystery guy asks, making some approximation of bedroom eyes in Ryan's direction. Ryan stops himself from wrinkling his nose; the guy has a goatee and looks like he hasn't washed his hair in an easy five days. He looks like every image of a predator that was ever pressed to the girls in Ryan's middle school sex education class. He's a creep, more or less. Just a creep.

"Yeah, me and my boyfriend come all the time," Ryan says, the lie slipping out easily enough that he doesn't realise he's saying it until it's too late. The guy, undeterred now gets a shark-like grin.

"Boyfriend, huh? And where's he now, sweetheart?" he asks, and Ryan feels a little sick, to be honest. Ever the savior from Ryan's most awkward social interactions, that's when Shane slides into Ryan's side of the booth.

"Something goin' on, Ry?" Shane asks, reading the situation easily enough to put an arm around Ryan's shoulders, moving in to sit close. He hands Ryan a drink easily, a straw stuck in it to easily care for Ryan's new interest. He seriously loves his best friend sometimes.

"Right here. I'm good, Shane. This guy was just... visiting," Ryan answers, his expression breaking into a grin. The guy looks like he's eaten something sour, sighing through his nose before getting out of his seat.

"I didn't want you anyway," he mutters, wandering away to creep on someone else, probably. Shane doesn't take his arm off of Ryan's shoulders, instead squeezing the other man close to his chest.

"What a creep. Oh, sorry," Shane says, taking his arm off of Ryan's shoulders. Ryan doesn't think about it before crowding into Shane's space, going on an impulse to kiss him. Shane makes a noise barely audible above the bar's sounds, but Ryan enjoys it anyway. Pulling away, Shane grins.

"I think we messed up your lipstick," he teases.

Fuck.

**Author's Note:**

> send me prompts for any buzzfeed ship on @halfwheeze on tumblr!


End file.
